September 13, 2007 - Nicotine – in any form – not safe.. A new study from Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City provides evidence that nicotine may accelerate atherosclerosis and may be as dangerous as tar. Right now, the general consensus is that the problem with cigarettes is tar and that nicotine is safe. That's why you can buy nicotine gum or patches to help you stop smoking. Our study presents new evidence that nicotine may not be safe at all, especially for your heart," says Dr. Daniel F. Catanzaro, principal investigator of the study, recently published in the journal Cardiovascular Toxicology. The study found that mice exposed to smoke from low-nicotine cigarettes had significantly smaller atherosclerotic lesions, compared to those exposed to regular cigarettes but still larger than lesions in control mice not exposed to cigarette smoke, which showed the least evidence of atherosclerosis. The accelerating effects of smoking on lesions was seen early, within weeks of smoke exposure. "While our study seems to suggest that low-nicotine cigarettes are safer, we also know that smokers adjust their smoking habits to maintain their level of nicotine. In other words, if you switch to a low-nicotine product, you will probably increase the number of cigarettes you smoke, or change the way you smoke to get more nicotine out of each cigarette. The best thing to do is quit," says Dr. Catanzaro. (Newswise Medical News, Tuesday, 9/11/07) Click on image to enlarge.. (Image from: www.freewebs.com/fourcrooks/)

September 13, 2007 - Smoker to be deported... A South Korean man is due to be deported from the Philippines today because he smoked in a taxi and then disobeyed a police officer – presumably by refusing to put out his cigarette. Cigarette smoking is prohibited in the southern Philippine city of Davao in all public places. The taxi is considered a public utility vehicle. Tobacco smoking more and more, as sales continue to decline, is looked upon as anti-social and unacceptable behavior.Click on image to enlarge..

September 13, 2007 -With a Little Bit of Effort Every Youngster Can Succeed..Smokers are less educated than non-smokers. The onset of tobacco use occurs primarily in early adolescence. Youth who do not start smoking by age 18 are unlikely to become adult smokers. The gravest and most commonly known health burdens from tobacco use, such as cancer, predominate in adult age groups. If you have a college degree, you have up to a 76% reduced risk of dying from cancer. Higher education lowers the risk for black and white women and men according to a report in the Sept 11 online edition of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. We must convince every youngster that with a little bit of effort anyone can succeed and live a healthy and fulfilling life. The solution to avoiding teen unhealthy behavior starts with a strong community support system for each and every youngster that will be there in the good times and help them get through the rough times. (TobaccoWatch.org)

September 12, 2007 - duMaurier SNUS - Imperial Tobacco Canada (a wholly owned indirect subsidiary of British American Tobacco(BAT)) today announced that it will fulfill its commitment to test market a reduced harm product, as compared to cigarettes, later this month with the introduction of Swedish-style snus in Edmonton retail outlets. On May 7, the Company promised to initiate market tests in one or more Canadian regions for a Swedish-style snus product - see related Newsbrief: May 8, 2007. "Many adult smokers continue to use tobacco and we believe the responsible thing to do is to seek out and offer products that may substantially reduce the health risks," said Benjamin Kemball, President and CEO of Imperial Tobacco Canada. Imperial Tobacco Canada's Edmonton test market is designed to assess consumer acceptance of snus. It will also monitor its use to compare it with the Swedish experience that it serves as a gateway from smoking. The company will offer its findings to Health Canada. Decisions on future test markets or expansion will be made later. Although Kemball wouldn't specify exactly why Edmonton was chosen for the test market, Les Hagen of the lobby group Action on Smoking and Health notedthat Alberta currently accounts for 40 per cent of the smokeless tobacco market in Canada. Hagen dismissed the company's efforts to portray snus as less harmful than cigarettes as "a hollow public relations gesture." He said snus will be sold under the DuMaurier brand, which will end up promoting sales of duMaurier cigarettes, not discouraging them. Isn't Imperial the same company that was going to close two Ontario plants and shift production to Mexico resulting in the loss of 635 jobs?? Mr. Hagen has also indicated that 8,000 more teenagers joined the tobacco market in 2006. Alberta may be Canada's most smoking-friendly province. (Edmonton Journal, April 2007)

September 11, 2007 - Camel, Kool fans will dig deeper.. Reynolds American will raise the prices of Camel, Kool and other cigarettes, helping the company counter a drop in demand that could follow a possible increase in federal tobacco taxes. The price of a pack of Camel will increase 15 cents and Kools will go up 5 cents a pack effective September 17, 2007. Reynolds' moves follow an increase by Philip Morris USA, the maker of top-selling Marlboro cigarettes. (See related Newsbrief: September 7, 2007.) The U.S. retail average for full-price cigarettes was $4.08 a pack in July, 2007. (Raleigh News & Observer)

September 10, 2007 - Youngsters using more smokeless tobacco..—Young people in the US seem to be smoking less than they did a few years back, but using slightly more smokeless tobacco, according to a report by Michelle R. Davis for Education Week quoting results from the 2006 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, which were released on Thursday. Among those 12 to 17 years of age, the rate of smoking declined from 13 per cent during 2002 to 10.4 per cent last year.However, the use of smokeless tobacco rose from 2.0 per cent to 2.4 per cent. (Tobacco Reporter)

July 9, 2007 - WASHINGTON (AP) — The nation's 45 million smokers will probably help pay for the spending increase that Democrats want for children's health insurance, say analysts familiar with deliberations on Capitol Hill. Democratic lawmakers will push for $50 billion in new funding for the State Children's Health Insurance Program over the next five years. To pay for that increase, they must find new sources of revenue or cut existing programs. (USA Today) An extra 61 U.S. cents per pack is what American smokers would pay to finance expanded health insurance to about 2 million children under a tentative agreement worked out Tuesday between Republicans and Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee. The tobacco tax increase would boost the tax per pack from 39 cents to 1 U.S. dollar, an increase of 156%. (July 17th - also the federal tax on a cigar could rise from 5 cents to $10 per cigar.) It would raise about 35 billion dollars during five years to pay for the largest expansion of the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) since its creation a decade ago. "It really does come down to a choice between children and tobacco," said Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Ore., who originally proposed the 61-cent increase. "This is a 'two-fer.' It does decrease smoking, and it does connect public health care costs with one of the drivers of that cost, and that's tobacco." (Chinaview.cn July 7, 2007) Let's Increase the TAX on all tobacco products.. - from The New York Times article by Robt. Pear - July 14, 2007 - The plan calls for proportional increases for other tobacco products. Renewal of the children’s insurance program, which is set to expire on Sept. 30, 2007 is the most important health care issue facing Congress this year, lawmakers of both parties say. Get It Done..